Drayton Glass Works
Biking home with a fresh loaf of bread from the Back in the Day Bakery, we passed a tiny shop in which someone was at work blowing glass. Curiosity stoked, we stepped inside the Drayton Glass Works a couple days later to meet its owner, Jonathan Poirier: a Rhode Island native who spent years in Sweden learning the Swedish style of glass blowing.
While heating, blowing, spinning and shaping colored glass into the form of bottles, Jon told us about his life and the shop. He’s been in Savannah for over ten years, running the Drayton Glass Works, and building up a name as one of the best glass blowers in the country — certainly the best in Georgia. As happens with crafts that can be industrialized, glass blowing has lost its stature as an occupation, but talented artisans such as Jon still find plenty of customers looking for unique, hand-made pieces to be given as gifts, or to provide an individual touch to their homes.
I was amazed that he continued to work, not missing a stride, while carrying on a conversation with us; glass blowing is clearly something he’s been doing for a long while. The vases, bowls and lamps on display in the tiny store at the entrance to his workshop are amazing — colored lines and bubbles blown into patterns. It’s little wonder that Jon’s been successful, even though he doesn’t have that self-promoting quality so common in artists. It’s hard to imagine a more down-to-earth guy.
Stop by his shop if you get a chance… and see if you can resist buying one of his pieces. Savannah is a city full of art, but Drayton Glass Works is a real stand-out.
Drayton Glass Works
2421 ½ Drayton Street
Location on our Savannah Map
912-234-8654
November 24, 2010 at 12:52 pm Comments (5)
